Ma’amoul (Stuffed Buttery Cookies)

Ma’amoul are what I would call, cookies from Heaven!! They melt in the mouth and make you feel so happy. Filled with ground almonds, walnuts, pistachios or dates, scented with orange blossom water and dusted with icing sugar they are just utter bliss and so irresistibly delicious! These delicate stuffed pastries are so addicting that once you try them you are sure not going to stop with one. I love the ones with pistachio filling the best.

Ma’amoul – the most popular Holiday Cookies No holidays or festivals are complete without these stuffed buttery short bread cookies in the middle eastern countries from where they originated. These cookies are a must in every household whether it is Eid, Christmas, Easter or Hanukkah and the preparations begin a few days earlier with families and friends gathering together to make these cookies.

They are usually made by hand using a wooden mold in different shapes. There is not much sugar added to the buttery dough because of the naturally sweet dates filling or nut and honey filling inside. They are also made with semolina but after many trials I personally prefer making them with only flour as it blends in with the butter better to give a smooth and crunchy texture.

“They are very popular in Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, and other Levantine countries and are baked in Ramadan and on the Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha holidays. Arab Christians eat them in the days before Lent, on Easter Sunday and on the feast of Epiphany. In the Greek and Arab Christian traditions, the cookies are shaped into rings to symbolize the crown of Jesus.

They are also popular among Syrian, Lebanese and Egyptian Jewish communities, where ma’amoul with nut fillings are eaten on Purim, and ma’amoul with date fillings are eaten on Rosh Hashanah and Hanukkah.

The Levantine Jewish version of ma’amoul differs from the Levantine or Turkish versions by being made with pure white flour and no semolina, today this variation is eaten in Israel and by Syrian and Egyptian Jewish communities in the Diaspora.” (source: wikipedia)

I am so fond of these cookies that I always make them in big batches for special occasions. I have not only made them for Eid, for kids home comings, for social gatherings or events but also gifted them at weddings. It gives me a great pleasure to see my guests enjoy them and these cookies disappearing from the table in no time.

2. Add the orange blossom water to the butter and pulse again to a smooth consistency.

3. Combine the flour, salt and sugar together.

4. As the processor is running start adding the flour through the spout stopping at intervals so as not to heat up the processor until all the flour is incorporated. If the dough you get is too moist and sticky add a little more flour and if too dry then a little more butter. But for me, with 4 cups and a little more it turns out just right. Remove and set aside in a bowl.

5. Meanwhile pound the nuts coarsely. You can use different fillings with mixed nuts (almonds, pistachios and walnuts) or just any nut of your choice (pistachios, walnuts or almonds) in combination with honey, icing sugar and orange blossom water. You can also use just date paste mixed with orange blossom water. Or dates and mixed nuts with orange blossom water. You can be as creative as you want with your fillings. For the ma’amoul fillings recipe click here.

6. Make small round balls of the dough. Make slightly bigger balls of the filling and set them aside. Keep the flour duster and tea towels ready. If you are using more than one filling you can use different molds just to differentiate them from the shape.

7. Make a depression in the small rounds of the dough, shape them like a bowl by swirling around and pinching the edge/rim with your fingers and thumb. Place the filling in the bowl, close the dough over the filling, pinch to seal and smoothen it like a ball. Please note that there should be a considerably thin layer of dough around the filling (not so thin that the filling comes out on baking and not so thick that there’s very little filling inside). Wipe your hands with the tea towel each time you touch the filling to avoid discolouring the dough.

8. Roll the filled rounds in the flour, dust the mold too with a little flour then overturn it and tap to shake off the excess flour. This helps the ma’amoul from easily falling off the mold.

9. Place the filled ma’amoul in the selected shape in the ma’amoul mold and press it with your palm. Do not overdo it as it would rupture the dough and the filling would come out.

10. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

11. Now tap the mold on the edge of the cookie sheet to get the ma’amoul fall off. Or you could keep a separate tray to tap the mamouls from the mold. Repeat with the rest of the ma’amouls.

12. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Bake the maamouls for around 10 -12 minutes till the base of the ma’amoul is lightly golden brown. After 12 mins take a flat thin spatula and lift the base of a ma’amoul to see if it is done. Remove when they look firm but still white at the top and lightly golden at the base.

13. Cool on wire wrack for one hour. Dust them with icing sugar after they cool down completely and enjoy. Below is the picture of ma’amouls in a gift wrap for a wedding.

Tips: Do not store these cookies in the fridge. Store them in a cool dry place in an air tight container or cookie jar. They stay fresh outside for 2 – 4 weeks. You may freeze them if you want to store for longer periods of time. But bring them to room temperature before serving them.

Ma'amoul (Stuffed Buttery Cookies)

Ma'amouls are what I would call, cookies from Heaven!! They melt in the mouth and make you feel so happy. These little goodies, packed with rich nuts, scented with orange blossom water and sweetened with honey are so addicting that you would never want to stop eating them. I love the ones with pistachio filling the best.

Add the orange blossom water to the butter and pulse again to a smooth consistency.

Combine the flour, salt and sugar together.

As the processor is running start adding the flour mixture through the spout (stopping at intervals so as not to heat up the processor) until all the flour is incorporated. If the dough you get is too moist and sticky add a little more flour and if too dry then a little more butter. But for me, with 4 cups and a little more it turns out just right. Remove and set aside in a bowl.

Meanwhile pound the nuts coarsely. You can use different fillings with mixed nuts (almonds, pistachios and walnuts) or just any nut of your choice (pistachios, walnuts or almonds) in combination with honey, icing sugar and orange blossom water. You can also use just date paste mixed with orange blossom water. Or dates and mixed nuts with orange blossom water. You can be as creative as you want with your fillings. For the maamoul fillings recipe here

Make small round balls of the dough. Make slightly bigger balls of the filling and set them aside. Keep the flour duster and tea towels ready. If you are using more than one filling you can use different molds just to differentiate them from the shape.

Make a depression in the small rounds of the dough, shape them like a bowl by swirling around and pinching the edge/rim with your fingers and thumb. Place the filling in the bowl, close the dough over the filling, pinch to seal and smoothen it like a ball. Please note that there should be a considerably thin layer of dough around the filling (not so thin that the filling comes out on baking and not so thick that there's very little filling inside). Wipe your hands with the tea towel each time you touch the filling to avoid discolouring the dough.

Roll the filled rounds in the flour, dust the mold too with a little flour then overturn it and tap to shake off the excess flour. This helps the ma'amoul from easily falling off the mold.

Place the filled ma'amoul in the selected shape in the ma'amoul mold and press it with your palm. Do not overdo it as it would rupture the dough and the filling would come out.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Now tap the mold on the edge of the cookie sheet to get the ma'amoul fall off. Or you could keep a separate tray to tap the mamouls from the mold. Repeat with the rest of the ma'amouls.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Bake the maamouls for around 10 -12 minutes till the base of the ma'amoul is lightly golden brown. After 12 mins take a flat thin spatula and lift the base of a ma'amoul to see if it is done. Remove when they look firm but still white at the top and lightly golden at the base.

Cool on wire wrack for one hour. Dust them with icing sugar after they cool down completely and enjoy.

Recipe Notes

Tips:

Do not store these cookies in the fridge. Store them in a cool dry place in an air tight container or cookie jar. They stay fresh outside for 2 - 4 weeks. You may freeze them if you want to store for longer periods of time. But bring them to room temperature before serving them.

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